Means for transmitting mechanical motion through a fluidtight wall



Apnl 24, 1951 J. R. OLIVER MEANS FOR TRANSMITTING MECHANICAL MOTIONTHROUGH FLUID-TIGHT WALLS Original Filed Jan. 20, 1945 fiwen for John R022 7/8? Patented Apr. 24, 1951 MEANS FOR TRANSMITTING IVIECHANICALMOTION THROUGH A FLUIDTIGHT WALL John R. Oliver, Springfield, Mass,assignor to United Shoe Machinery Corporation, Flemington, N. J'., acorporation of New Jersey Original application January 20, 1945, SerialNo.

573,799; Divided and this application December 8; 1947, Serial No.790,362

3 Claims. 1

This inventionrelates to means .for transmitting mechanical motionthrough a fluid-tight wall and is herein illustrated as embodied inapparatus including a pelorus or sighting instrument mounted on the deckof a submarine. The illustrated apparatus includes direction indicatingmeans mounted in a fluid-tight housing. In the illustrated apparatus themeans for transmitting mechanical motion is part of a signaling systemwhereby the observer signals the control room of the submarine when thepelorus or sighting instrument is accurately trained on a target. Thesignaling system includes a micro-switch which is mounted in the housinto protect it from the elements.

It is an object of the present invention to provide means convenientlyarranged with relation to the pelorus whereby the observer may readilyoperate. the micro-switch to transmit a signal to the control room. Withthis in view the invention contemplates the provision of n1otiontransmitting means comprising a lever ex tending through an opening inthe wall of the housing and means sealing said opening against waterunder pressure comprising a plug having. a frusto-conical bore throughwhich the. motion transmitting: lever extends,. and a flexibleelement-bonded to the frusto-conical surface of said plug and also tosaid lever. It is importantthat provision be made for preventingaccidental opr eration of said motion transmitting lever by the actionof the sea against the outwardly projecting portion of said lever whenthe submarine is submerged. To this end theinvention provides,

in combination with the motion transmitting lever and the flexibleelement above referred to, means actuated by external pressure againstsaid lever for rendering it inoperative. As herein illustrated, saidmeans comprises an abutment extending inwardly from the frusto-conicalsurface of the plug and arranged to cooperate with means extendingoutwardly from the motion transmitting lever.

After the observer transmits a signal to the control room through thesignaling system above d scribed, the oflicer in the control roomdetermines the bearing of the target by reading indicating mechanismwhich is operated by the electrical transmitting devices of a selsynsystem, so

called, embodied in the deck assembly, and illustrated and described inan application for United States Letters Patent, Serial No. 573,799,filed January 20, 1945, in my name, of which the present application isa division.

The invention will now be described with reference to the accompanyingdrawings and pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings,

Fig. l. is airont elevation illustrating apparatus embodying thefeatures of the present invention, the base portion of the apparatusbeing broken away Fig. 2. is a section on the line II-II of. Fig. l; andI Fig. 3 is a. detail view in elevation illustrating mechanism foroperatin a micro-switch.

In Fig. 1 there is illustrated a pelorus mounted on thedeck of asubmarine. The illustrated pelorus comprises a pair of binoculars itsuspended on ahanger [2 having right and left handles is and I5 wherebythe observer swings the binoculars in azimuth and in elevation..'.Thehang er is mounted for swinging movement in elevation on headed pins itat the upper extremities of standards 2t secured to a bezel ring 22. Thebezel. ring is secured to a circular housing 2d having a downwardlyextending hub (not shown) mounted in suitable bearings in a housing 25,to permit movement of the binocular mount in azimuth. The assembly abovedescribed is support.- ed in a circular frame 28 secured to a rigidportion of the superstructure of the submarine'and so arranged thereonthat the binoculars are positioned approximately at the: eye level ofthe'observer. .The frame 23 is in the form of a flanged ring: arrangedhorizontally on thesuperstructure of the submarine and having upwardextensions or standards 30 at opposite sides thereof which providebearings for a gimbal mechanism in which the illustrated assembly issuspended. lhe gimbal mechanism comprises a ring 32 having outwardlyprojecting trunnion pins 34 jcurnaled in hearings in the upper portionsof the standards 36. The ring 32 provides a mounting for the housing 26,said housing having outwardly and upwardly extending arms 38 pivotaliymounted on bolts 38 projecting outwardly from the ring 32- at pointsangularly spaced 90 from the bearings of the ring in the standards.The'housing 2t provides a water-tight closure having mounted thereinindicatin mechanism whereby the ob server may determine the settin ofthe binoculots in azimuth and the housing. 25. provides a water-tightclosure for synchronous generators which are actuated by movement of thebinoculars in azimuth. The synchronous generators are electricallyconnected to synchronousmotors, located inthe'control room of thesubmarine and arranged to operate mechanism which indicates the angularpositionv of the binoculars. in azimuth V relatively to the longitudinalcenter line or lubber line of the submarine.

In order to enable the observer to signal the control room when the lineof sight of the binoculars has been brought to bear on the target, meansis provided in the right handle 14 of the hanger l2 for operating amicro-switch 40 (Fig. 3) mounted in the housing 24. The illustratedmechanism for operating the micro-switch comprises a plunger 42 (Fig. 2)mounted for vertical movement in the handle l4 and yieldingly held atthe limit of its upward movements by a spring 44 surrounding the plungerand confined between the head 46 of the plunger and the base of acounterbore in the handle. Downward movement of the plunger 42 bypressure of the thumb of the observer on the head of the plunger rocks alever 48 pivoted on the standard 20 in a clockwise direction as seen inFig. 1. In order [that the plunger may operate the lever 48 in anyposition of the hanger l2, within its normal range of rotary movement onthe pins 18, the plunger has secured to its reduced lower end portion anarcuate shoe 50 arranged to engage the outer end portion of the lever48, said shoe being so arranged that the center of its arc coincideswith the axis of rotation of the hanger when the plunger is in itsposition illustrated in Fig. 1. For securing the arcuate shoe to theplunger said shoe has an outwardly extending lug 52 which is bored toreceive the reduced lower end portion of the plunger, said lug beingclamped to a shoulder in the plunger by a nut 54. The lever 48 isconnected to a switch operating lever 56 (Fig. 3) by a link 58 pivotallyconnected to the inner end portion of the lever 48 and bored at itslower end portion to receive the outwardly projecting portion of thelever 56. The upward movement of the link 58 by the operation of theplunger 42 is imparted to the lever 56, the bore in the link being largeenough to permit the required operating movement of the lever. The lever56 is secured in a mounting constructed and arranged to permit rockingmovement of the lever suificient to operate the micro-switch 40 whileexcluding water under pressure from the closure in the base of thepelorus. As illustrated in Fig. 3 the lever 55 is mounted in a centralopening in a resilient rubber ring 60 and is securely bonded thereto toprevent seepage of water along the joint between the lever and the ring.The frusto-conical peripheral surface of the ring 68 is bonded to thecomplementally shaped inner wall of a hollow screw plug 62 which isthreaded into a suitable opening in the cylindrical base member 64 ofthe pelorus. Theinner end face of the ring bears against an annularabutment plate 66 fixed in the hollow plug 62, said plate serving totake the force of the sea water pressure against the ring when thesubmarine is submerged. In order to increase the flexibility of the ring60 it is cut away as indicated at 68 in Fig. 3 in order to reduce to aminimum thickness the inner body portion of the ring while providing amaximum bonding surface of the ring on the lever 56 and the plug 62.

In order to prevent accidental operation of the micro-switch by theaction of the sea on the exposed mechanism for operating the lever 56said lever is provided with a peripheral flange I0 and the rubber ring60 is cut away in the region or said flange so that when thepressure ofthe sea acts. on the exposed end face of the lever and the ring therewill be a metal-to-metal contact of the flange with the abutment plate.When 4 the submarine is submerged the pressure of the sea water againstthe end face of the lever 56 causes the flange I0 embedded in said ringto act against the abutment plate to retain the lever inv its horizontalposition with the inner end of said lever out of contact with themicro-switch. When the submarine is on the surface the flange 10 issufliciently separated from the abutment plate 66 by the interveningflange of the ring 60 to permit free movement of the lever 56 within therange required for operation of the microswitch.

It will be understood that the utility of the illustrated mechanism fortransmitting mechanical motion through a fluid-tight wall is not limitedto its illustrated embodiment in a pelorus on the deck of a submarine,nor is it limited to mechanism for operating a micro-switch.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. Means for transmitting mechanical motion through a fluid-tight wallcomprising a motion transmitting member extending through an opening insaid wall, means sealing said opening against fluid under pressureincluding a, flexible plug surrounding said member and constructed andarranged to accommodate motion transmitting movement thereof, anabutment for said plug fixed relatively to said wall, and a projectionon said motion transmitting member so constructed and arranged thatexternal pressure against said member causes the projection and theabutment to cooperate to hold said member against motion transmittingmovement.

2. Means for transmitting mechanical motion comprising an arm extendingthrough an opening in a wall, a closure for said opening comprising aplug having a bore enclosed by a frustoconical surface, a flexibleelement bonded to the frusto-conical surface of said plu and surroundingand bonded to said arm, and a rigid abutment extending inwardly from thefrusto-conical surface of the plug and arranged tosustain pressureagainst said flexible-element.

3. Means for transmitting mechanical motion through a fluid-tight wallcomprising a motion transmitting member extending through an opening insaid wall, means sealing said opening against fluid under pressureincluding a flexible element surrounding said member and construct- JOHNR. OLIVER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS

